Several prior attempts at pouring adobe into forms have been made, all with limited success. One method used in the southwest around the turn of the century when wood boards became available, was to construct a loose lattice or board framework, and pour the adobe into it. The problems here were that the exterior adobe plaster did not adhere well to the wood and required constant maintenance. The wood eventually rotted away, leaving unsupported sections of adobe wall.
Newer attempts have concentrated on moveable frame moulds that could be placed on the wall being built, filled with adobe and then pulled off and placed on the wall again to be refilled. The concept has produced successful walls, but the following limitations have prevented wide acceptance: (a) generally only one course can be poured a day since the wet adobe must dry out to become rigid; (b) the forms are usually placed and filled manually. Loading the adobe mechanically would not be cost-effective in this case because of the long curing time.
Concrete forming procedures have been tried for adobe, but found to be non-functional since the adobe does not set up chemically, but requires air to dry and thereby harden. Molds, some of which are for concrete, are described in U.S. Pat. Nos. 1,173,880; 1,667,253; 1,667,253; 1,963,981; 2,313,880; 1,607,114 and 840,672.